12:11 PM EDT, 09/26/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Southwest Airlines ( LUV ) is mitigating operational risks from future Boeing ( BA ) delivery delays by lowering growth targets to reduce the number of required aircraft and limiting recruitment to essential roles, Chief Executive Robert Jordan said Thursday, according to a Capital IQ transcript.

The delays are causing "significant issues" for Southwest ( LUV ) as Boeing ( BA ) has delivered "very few" Max aircraft on time, Jordan said, adding they were still waiting on the Max 7 certification.

"All growth through 2026 will come from efficiency initiatives like turn improvement and redeyes," Jordan said during the company's 2024 investor day webcast, according to the Capital IQ transcript. "This, combined with essential-only hiring will allow us to eliminate our current Boeing ( BA )-driven overstaffing drag in 2025."

Jordan reiterated the company's expectation to reduce headcount by 2,000 at the end of the year with further cuts expected in 2025.

Shares of the company were up more than 10% in recent trading.

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